Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

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Skyline - Frankfurt am Main (Frankfurt on the Main [River])

Frankfurt, Sinterklaas, and Aufenthaltsgenehmigungen!

November 27, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Last weekend I had the opportunity to spend a few days visiting a good friend in Frankfurt. Besides short layovers at the train station (one of the largest in Germany), I haven‘t gotten to spend much time in Frankfurt, although I got to know the city pretty well as an exchange student there in early 2009. Jamina (my German friend) was an exchange student at my high school in 2006-2007, and we‘ve kept in contact ever since. Frankfurt is a beautiful city – for a population of “only” roughly 650,000 (a smaller city, for American standards) it’s the only German city with a picturesque skyline full of skyscrapers. Such a cityscape is pretty unusual for Germany. Much like Chicago, Frankfurt is a business-city, specifically, a banking city. Just about every major European bank has an office there, most German banks are based there, it’s where the German Stock Exchange is located, and it is the banking center the European Union. Frankfurt is actually very safe city to visit despite having one of the highest crime rates in Europe. The reason for that statistic is because nearly all credit card fraud and identity theft that occurs in Germany is credited to Frankfurt, where the banks are based. The city itself features many museums, historic buildings (such as the birthplace Goethe), great shopping, excellent public transportation, as well as art, music, and theater.

 

Skyline - Frankfurt am Main (Frankfurt on the Main (River))

The Commerzbank Building - Frankfurt's "Sears Tower"

As a Medical Student, Jamina doesn’t have tons of time to spare, but I was grateful for the long weekend between her exams to visit! On Thursday directly after my classes I left for the train station, and made my way to Stuttgart. I was surprised to have found a train from Stuttgart to Frankfurt for €20 a couple days earlier, which in comparison to the other offers was significantly cheaper. I have a “Bahnkarte 50“ (a discount card for students through German Rail that allows me to pay half price for train travel), which makes the normal-priced tickets seem even more expensive.

 

**Note for future Tübingen study-abroad students: In my opinion, it‘s really worth it to invest in a Bahnkarte 50 ermäßigt. For €118, you pay half price on all train travel in Germany for the entire year. If you plan on going anywhere out of the immediate Tübingen area, you can really save a lot of money. Even going to Stuttgart, you can save a few euros each way, and if you take more than six train trips throughout the year at an average cost of €40 per round trip (before the reduction) the card will have already paid for itself. That figure is based on the average round trip to Frankfurt and back, (average as in good deal, but not out of the question) as I have lots of friends in the Frankfurt area. If you‘re planning on going further than an hour-and-a-half by train, you can save even more money. Lots of people like to buy the “Eurail“ passes, but in my opinion, it makes much more sense to buy the Bahnkarte 50. That way, you can save money by traveling by train within Germany, and if you want to travel internationally, you can always find cheap flights, thus saving lots of time and lots of money. Eurail passes are quite expensive, and although it‘s something of a European novelty to travel by train, it is not difficult to find good deals on airline tickets, which takes significantly less time. For example, last month we flew round trip to Vienna for €60, and the direct flight from Stuttgart took less than two hours. A train from Stuttgart to Vienna costs minimally €130, requires at least one transfer with layover, and requires minimally seven hours. And Austria borders Germany. Imagine going somewhere even further…**

Movie Night!

Anyway, after a short train trip and a tram ride to Jamina‘s apartment, I was treated to a great gluten-free dinner that she cooked for me before catching up on various aspects of life from the past three years, as well as watching a German movie. It‘s amazing how close you remain with good friends, regardless of how much time has passed. Jamina lives in a really cool apartment building near the Commerzbank Arena where the soccer team Eintracht Frankfurt plays. The building itself is actually intended for senior citizens who still live on their own, but because it is subsidized by the government for those living on fixed incomes, students are eligible to live there too. Walking down the hallways, you can tell whether you‘re passing a senior citizen‘s room or a student‘s room depending on whether a bicycle or a walker is sitting outside the door. I had to laugh to myself just a little bit, but the apartment itself was very luxurious compared to the living accommodations of the average American student, and nicer than my German dorm room too! Surprisingly, even though it has a living room, sleeping area, bathroom, and full kitchen, it was only a little more expensive than what I‘m paying per month in Tübingen. Plus, it‘s right on the tram line which makes getting to the city very accessible.

The "Hauptwache" = Trendy shopping district, which is in my opinion, the closest thing you'll find in Germany to Michigan Avenue. If you're an American mall store fan, you'll love it: this mall has one of the only Hollister stores in Germany. If you're into Euro style, this street is also home to five multi-story H&M stores. (Score!)

Although we didn’t have any big plans in particular, we did have the chance to do some shopping, check out the German Film Museum, see an open studio night at big artist studio building, walk through the city, and visit some places I enjoyed as an exchange student, including the European Union Central Bank where the Occupy Frankfurt protest was taking place. I’ve been reading a decent amount about the Occupy fill-in-the-blank protests, and it was interesting to see the one in Frankfurt. I had 5 hours to kill on Friday while Jamina was in class, so it was nice to just wander around a little bit and see how much of the city I remembered! And no visit to Frankfurt would be complete without a visit to a historic area of the city known as “Sachsenhausen” for a glass of Apple Wine, which we also crossed off the list.

The European Union Central Bank - Occupy Frankfurt Protest

Hhmm..... Not quite.

 

Every (German) protest needs a VW Microbus!

I returned from Frankfurt on Sunday night, and Monday evening we were invited to celebrate the Belgian “Sinterklaas” day, which normally takes place on November 6th. It is comparable to the German St. Nikolaus day that some people celebrate in the United States as well. One of our Belgian friends here, Helena, had a visit from her parents two weeks ago, who brought along the largest assortment of Belgian Sinterklaas day chocolate I’ve ever seen. (haha.) They had homemade hot chocolate and Belgian beer for us to sample, and the table was festively decorated. Each place was set with a couple of carefully-arranged Sinterklaas chocolates. They even had a couple extra-large chocolate Sinterklaases (like the chocolate bunnies we eat at Easter) that we broke into and shared amongst ourselves. At the end of the night we were all very full and couldn’t bring ourselves to look at another piece of chocolate, but they had so much left over that they joked about having a second Sinterklaas party this week. German chocolate is quite good, but just as the Europeans will tell you, Swiss and Belgian chocolate is top-quality. It totally puts Hersheys to shame.

 

 

According to the tradition, Sinterklaas lives in Spain, and comes to Belgium every November 6th on a ship loaded full of goodies for all the good Belgian children. (There are actually two variations of this holiday in Belgium: The Sinterklaas day on November 6th in one part of the country, and another gift-bearing figure who comes to children in the other half of the country a few weeks later. I’ve forgotten the exact details…) Sinterklaas is one of the sources of the American “Santa Claus“ tradition (hence the similarity between the names) and just like the American version, knows everything about every child. He even keeps a book in which he writes about the goodness or badness of every Belgian child in the half of the country for which he is responsible.

Sinterklaas Day! Complete with Belgian Chocolate of every variety!

My third adventure for this blog post regards a trip to the Bürgeramt (City Government Building) to visit the most unhappy, unfriendly, and blatantly-rude public workers in the entire Federal Republic of Germany. Much like the DMV, (or as it is known in Indiana, the BMV) the Bürgeramt is full of generally stressed-out and unhappy people, waiting for appointments requiring a library‘s worth of paperwork required for an important document of some sort that you can only hope to receive from somebody who is sick and tired of telling people all day long that they forgot to bring such and such necessary piece of paper. As of last week, I have now been in the European Union for three months, the maximum amount of time granted to tourists to remain in the country. Now that I am no longer officially a tourist, I needed to get a visa (Aufenthaltsgenehmigung) to stay for the rest of the year, and avoid imminent deportation.

 

Although I managed to bring all of the necessary documents along with my fee of €50, I forgot to convert my height to centimeters. When the woman asked me what my height was, I had no idea what to tell her, as I‘m pretty sure “Six feet, two inches“ would not have held much water on an application for a European visa. She rolled her eyes at me, scowled, and sighed angrily, as she threw her drawer open, pulled out an extendable ruler, and told me to stand against the wall. Out of fear, I complied as she measured me, wrote down my height in centimeters, and angrily slammed the drawer of her desk shut. With that, I was handed an information pamphlet and instructions for my next visit as soon as my visa arrives in the mail from Berlin. Mission Aufenthaltsgenehmigung: accomplished. Deportation avoided. As I walked out, I could hear the same employee shouting (really, shouting) at the people who were next in line. I must have gotten off easy.

 

That‘s all for this post! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break back at home! Check out Jake‘s upcoming blog to read about our trip to the Ritter Sport Museum and the Thanksgiving dinner we hosted last night for our new international friends. (It must have been an accident, but we managed to pull everything together without burning/ruining anything!)

 

Bis dann,

 

Zach

Traveling with More Questions.

November 22, 2011 / / 0 Comments

This is a blog that I wrote with another girl on the program, Emma Russell. We wrote it for one of our classes… Hope you enjoy!!

This past week we embarked on our final community trip before we depart for Cape Town in. On this trip to Southern Namibia the focus was on our development class; specifically community-based natural resource management and “sustainable” development. We stayed at various campsites, some run by the community and others by the private sector. We also paid a visit to the heart of a community initiative to sell Namibian crafts and painted the walls of a secondary school under renovation along with some of its students. Overall, it was an incredible three days that were full of fun and, as true of any development class, full of questions. While we ruminated over the pros and cons of Namibia’s community-based natural resource management initiatives, our reflections on the trip also fostered some bigger questions that have seemed to permeate the entirety of our experiences with CGE thus far.

The paramount question on our minds that kept resurfacing throughout the weekend was the concept of definition, as in who ultimately defines the things that inform the way development occurs, and the way we live in general. This has been a recurring theme throughout the program as we study things like globalization, colonization, need, and identity. However, this weekend we were able to put it into direct context with what we were experiencing. For example, we first discussed how even defining “sustainable” in terms of development could have such a variety of meanings; it depends on the lens of the individual and what is valued under certain circumstances. For example, at the Brukkaros Community Campsite and the school we visited in Berseba, it was evident that the emphasis was placed on advances that would help to preserve community and education. However, we also visited the Gibeon Folk Arts Center which not only centered on sustaining community, but also on preserving culture through art and the livelihood of the artists who worked there. Our final stop was the Gondwana Kalahari Anib Lodge where the focus was primarily on environment and resources (as it was situated in a National Park) as well as economy through tourism. These different perspectives encouraged us to discern what is most crucial to be sustainable and how that influences the overall development for Namibia in particular.

Another matter that arose yet again on this trip was the land issue troubling Namibia. This is a conflict that has emerged a number of times in several of our classes and it involves the question of whether a redistribution of lands to native Namibian tribes is an appropriate and necessary step towards reconciliation in a post-colonial era. However, as was revealed to us on this trip, the dilemma goes much deeper than it’s already complex nature. When considering this, we were faced again with the concepts of definition and perspective. Who best decides how to respect the land? During our time in the South we did witness action to respect the land by conserving it and its resources; that is, in fact, exactly what the Gondwana Kalahari Anib Lodge intended to do. However, we had to wonder if the best way to respect the land is indeed to return it to those who it was wrongfully taken from under the colonial and apartheid regimes. We concluded that it depends on whom you ask and we were certainly in no position to decide.

Finally, the enigma of definition took on a more subjective arrangement when we considered the ideal of success. While we have often viewed this throughout the course in terms of broad scale national development markers, we came to realize it could be as personal as selling a craft, painting a school, or climbing a mountain. For example, at the Gibeon Folk Arts Center we spoke with the five craftswomen who head up the entire project. In speaking with them we learned that they only see about 5% of the profits gained by their crafts, further remarking that it is just “not enough”. If one were to consider this from an economic perspective he/she would most likely classify this project as being unsuccessful because the women are not making enough profit for themselves to completely sustain the livelihoods of themselves and their families. However, if one were to define success in terms of employment and empowerment, this is no doubt a highly successful project.

At the school we painted in Berseba with the kids, we learned from Petrus, a former educator at the school and chairperson of the Brukkaros Community Campsite, that it had been shut down due to an inability to pay for the astronomical water bill. To the members of the Berseba Community, success was not immediately defined by the number of students going to top universities or the number of championships won in the local sports league, but rather by acquiring basic necessities and getting their buildings in top shape for reopening once those needs are attained.

To us over these three days success came in many forms. It came with climbing several kilometers to the top of Brukkaros Mountain, the mountain that our campsite was built into in Berseba. It was a treacherous hike but the breathtaking view from the top was the most success many of us have felt in some time. Success also came not with the answers we did not formulate, but rather the questions we so genuinely acknowledged on our trip. We look forward to the future of our trip, which will surely only bring more questions such as these, but hopefully continue to provide us with the tools and knowledge necessary to productively and justly consider them.

Les Tendances à Paris

November 20, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Upon my arrival in Paris, (for the first, second, and third time), once of the first things I noticed was how incredibly well-dressed its natives were. Even the children were dressed to the nines, decked out head-to-toe in designer duds. Needless to say, my dirty canvas Keds were suddenly lookin’ insufficient.

Having lived among Parisiens for the past three months, I can honestly say that my first impressions were spot on; I’m here to tell you that they look this good all the time. Bravo, sexy librarians on the metro and svelte looking hipsters in scarves and red pants smoking nonchalantly while taking out the trash.

However, if you, like me, don’t happen to belong to either one of these categories, fear not! I’m here with five tips for lookin’ French or at least blending in.

1) Red pants. An absolute must. (If you want to be fashionable, that is)

2) Wear glasses, even if you don’t need them. In fact, especially if you don’t need them.

3) If you are a woman, carry a Longchamps bag. If you are a man, carry a man-purse.

4) Wear a trench coat!

( hound dog and magnifying glass,  optional) 

5) Ride a scooter! Be you child, teenager, or married mother of three. Wee!

 

Alas, have I followed any of the above advice? Well no. I am still wearing my dirty Keds and I may or may not have went to Vogue’s fashion Night Out wearing a Levi’s jean jacket. Do I ride a child’s scooter to work or to the market? Ya know, it’s really not practical. Plus, I can barely ride a bike, so why complicate things?

It’s possible that by not following the French fashion code, I may appear to be slacking in the cultural assimilation and understanding department. But that may be too hasty of a judgement. If I’m reading French newspapers, eating French food, and talking to French people, does that not demonstrate appreciation for the French way of life, regardless of whether or not I look good in red pants?

Burg Hollenzollern (out the bus window)

University Life + Weekend Excursions

November 12, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Greetings from Tübingen! Sorry it’s been a while – I haven’t actually fallen off the face of the earth, regardless of how it may seem. In this blog, I’ll be writing about two recent weekend day trips right after a short summary of my life over the past few weeks!

 

Everything here has definitely been starting to settle down a little bit, with the start of the winter semester. It’s been a little difficult getting used to the German university system in that I have so much extra time. Or so it seems… At home, there is absolutely ALWAYS something to do when I’m at Valpo. Always a paper to write, a book to read, a presentation to practice, a quiz to study for, an assignment to complete, a meeting to attend etc. Here, my classes meet once a week (with the exception of Theology, which meets twice a week) as opposed to courses at Valpo, which usually require 3 or 4 class periods per week. While American universities practice “Continuous Assessment” throughout the course of the semester, German universities typically place most, if not all of the emphasis, on a final presentation and/or exam. In some of my classes here, the only grade I will receive all semester long is the final exam grade.

 

What does that mean? No homework! Or so I originally thought. What it really means is that I’ve got to get a move on, and get myself on track to learning tons of material. (I know, I sound like a giant slacker, but many of the German students I’ve talked to also haven’t done much yet this semester either… Which makes me feel better. I’ve just been allowing myself to experience the life of a typical German student by living a comfortable life of social events while getting to know people and places. Just for a few short weeks 🙂

 

There’s really nothing assigned that I have to do, but there are online articles, books, and other supplementary materials that may very well be required knowledge for the tests in February. Which means that over the past few days, I’ve been scrambling a little to get organized with my course materials and start the learning process of preparing for the final exams. Almost every course here has PDF files online containing all the necessary course information, which I spent a painstaking 1.5 hours as well as €15 printing out in the library last week. (You’d think that printing something would be as easy as clicking print, confirming the print job by clicking “OK,” walking to the nearest printer, and collecting your double-sided document. Not here. Such as simple, everyday task would be too easy for the Germans, who like to complicate things just a little too much sometimes. But I’m not complaining! Just a cultural difference, and me poking a little fun!)

 

Anyway, during a conversation with a German friend here who studied for one semester in Missouri, I was told that universities in America are “easier” than in Germany. I found that opinion to be interesting, but I simply could not agree. It is a wonder that I survived the courseload I had last semester at home – it was in no way easy! There is, however, some truth to his comment, in regards to how American students are expected to learn. In my opinion, the American university system has much more structure than that of Germany. Students are expected to keep up with the pace of the course, but they are also told what they need to learn by the given deadlines (more or less.) Such a system leaves no room for the “guessing game” of, “what will be important on the test, what does the professor find most valuable, and what do I need to learn?” that I feel I’m currently struggling to play. In many of my courses at home, the semester is broken up into thirds, with three large exams at the end of every section rather than one single exam at the end. The content isn’t easier, but it is helpful actually knowing what you have to learn and be responsible for. At the end of the day you’re still learning, you just don’t have to take a lucky stab in the dark at a semester’s worth of content. Just my opinion…

 

Anyway, on Tuesday of last week, I decided to join another class, after already missing the first two. I figured that I had the extra time in my weekly schedule to pick up another marketing class, so after a few emails back and forth with the professor, I was officially registered for “Industriegütermarketing” (Industrial Goods Marketing.) The only catch was that I have to give a presentation with two other people next Wednesday, during our first “Übung” period. (An übung is similar to a “lab” course at Valpo – the material covered coincides with what is being taught in the lectures, and during this period you are given the chance to work through and apply the content learned in class.)

 

For the presentation, I’ll be talking about a case study about an electric company in New York, and explaining why they did not get a bid to build electric motor components for a company in Ohio. At home, this would be an extremely interesting topic to me, as a business major. Here, although interesting, it’s pretty complex. The case study has quite a few characters and a complex sequence of events that’s not exactly easy to understand, much less present. I’ve already had to give a few presentations in my language courses but it’s much easier presenting to other international students who, much like myself, are still in the process of learning German and don’t yet speak it perfectly!

 

So, other than a little slap in the face by reality and some homework etc. I really haven’t been up to too many exciting ventures besides the two small trips I’m about to write about! Next weekend, I’m off to Frankfurt to visit one of my best friends who was an exchange student in my High School, and I may be going to Sweden at the end of next month, but that remains to be determined! I have a couple different options for how I’ll be spending Christmas, but I haven’t been able to decide yet between them!

 

And, we're off! Our group before hiking to the Würmlinger Kapelle (Chapel of Würmlingen)

On Saturday, October 29 a group of us hiked to a chapel (the Würmlinger Kapelle) right outside of nearby Würmlingen. (You may remember my post a few weeks back about our first failed attempt to hike there, but this time we knew the way!) Among our group were Rachel, Jake, and I from Valpo, a friend of Jake who was visiting from Spain, two friends from Deutsch Kompakt, and a couple French friends that I’ve met over the past few weeks. We started at 11:00 AM on the Neckarbrücke (the Neckar Bridge) and made our way through the castle, and down the path to the chapel.

 

The Würmlinger Kapelle, and the beautiful Fall colors

The hike took about two hours to finally reach the chapel, where we proceeded to look around for awhile, and visit the grave of a former supporter and financial contributor to Valpo’s German program who lived in Würmlingen. The chapel is 961 years old, and somewhat of a well-known landmark for this region. It has been honored over the years by many poets, including Ludwig Uhland of Tübingen.

 

Picnic, and nap in the grass!

See this link for the text of Uhland’s poem (in German): http://www.historisches-wuerttemberg.de/kultur/dichter/uhland/kapelle.htm

 

There were a couple steep ascents, but overall it wasn’t a bad hike. The chapel is on top of a large hill covered in small vineyards, and the view from the top was beautiful. We all brought picnics along, which we enjoyed at the bottom of the hill before taking a nap on the grass. For the end of October, the weather was nothing like what I would have expected at this time of year after having lived 20 years in the brutally-cold Midwest. It really felt like it could have been a month-and-a-half earlier. After another two-hour hike back, we were back in Tübingen. I can only speak for myself, but the 10k trek tired me out more than I expected it to. All in all, it was a great day, and a must-do day trip for everyone who studies in Tübingen or Reutlingen!

 

Weekend excursion number 2 was a trip to nearby Burg Hollenzollern, (Hollenzollern Castle), home of the royal family of Prussia. Although the country of Prussia was effectively dissolved by the Nazis in 1932 and officially ceased to exist in 1947, the castle remains one of several official residences of Georg Friedrich, the current prince of Prussia. I find it strange that there is still a royal, extremely-wealthy Prussian family. They have their own website: http://www.preussen.de/en/today.html. In a way, it must be pretty nice to be the prince of a non-existent country. You’re royal, loaded, and you have absolutely zero political power or work to do! You could finance your whole life with the interest of all the investments and bank accounts started by your historically-royal and powerful family. And you get to carry the title, “Prince of Prussia.” Sounds great to me!

Burg Hollenzollern (out the bus window)

The castle is the third to have stood atop the mountain in the Swabian Alb range (not to be confused with the Alps, which has a very similar sound in German). It was completed in 1867, which means that it is both relatively new and in very good condition in comparison to most castles in Germany. Burg Hollenzolern has a very fairy-tale-like appearance to it, and although it fits the image that comes to mind when most Americans hear the word, “Castle,” it’s really quite unique. Most castles in Germany are multiple hundreds of years old. They’re cold, impersonal, and in many cases, nothing more than archaeological ruins.

Jake, Hannah, and Rachel make the climb up to the castle from the bus stop

We had originally planned on taking the tour in English, as Jake’s friend visiting from Spain was still with us. After buying the ticket and standing in the extremely long line, we were nearly an hour late for the English tour. It was a very beautiful October day, and Burg Hollenzollern simply couldn’t accommodate all the tourists that wanted in on the 1:00 tour. So, 45 minutes later, our tour began in German. It was no problem for us, and translating everything into English was good practice.

Inside the castle courtyard

Photography was prohibited inside of the castle, so I unfortunately don’t have any pictures to post from inside. The tour was excellent, and it is also a must-see for any tourists to the area / students studying in Reutlingen or Tübingen.

Another view of the Burg Hollenzollern

The castle also has a Biergarten and an excellent restaurant, where we elected to have dinner. There were a few hardy people enjoying the food and beer in the biergarten, but by the time evening rolled around it was too cold for us outside! The restaurant featured all sorts of traditional Swabian foods, including my favorite variety of Potato Salad typical of Southwest Germany.

 

Check out this website for more information about Burg Hollenzollern: http://www.burg-hohenzollern.com/startpage.html.

 

That’s all for now!

 

Next blog post to come sometime next week about my upcoming trip to Frankfurt! Wish me luck this week in classes as I attempt to understand everything! The philosophy “Fake it until you make it,” has never had so much relevance in my life as it does right now 😉

Check out my album October 2011 in Tübingen + Vienna! to see all my pictures from the two day-trips described above! (They’re at the end of the album.)

https://picasaweb.google.com/117445044945979223598/October2011InTubingenVienna?authuser=0&feat=directlink

 

Bis dann!

So, there aren't really pictures that would fit this post, so you all should enjoy some great German fall colors!

Classes in Tübingen

November 9, 2011 / / 0 Comments

So, it’s been another crazy week here in Tübingen. I’m getting ready to go visit some family this weekend that lives here in Germany, so I’ve been trying to get as much schoolwork finished before I leave. That will take up most of my weekend, so I wanted to get my homework out of the way first! Add that to the presentation I have to give later today, and you’ve got a pretty stressed out college kid!

So, there aren't really pictures that would fit this post, so you all should enjoy some great German fall colors!

In any case, I promised you all a post about my classes here in Tübingen! So here it its!

The semester here in Germany starts significantly later than back in America. We only started the second week of October, so we’re still relatively at the beginning of the semester.

Here in Tübingen I’m not going to take any classes needed for my Biology or Chemistry majors, but instead I’m just going to finish working on my General Education credits and getting some things out of the way for my German major.

So, with that in mind, I chose to take a class on the “Literature of the German Romantic Period,” one on “Mass Media and Advertising in Germany,” another on German Pronunciation, a lecture in Sociology, and a theology class called “On the Essence of Human Freedom.”

The first week of my classes went okay, and I got by understanding almost everything that was happening. It was a little intimidating to find out that I’d have to give big presentations and write a 20-page paper for almost every class at the end of the semester, but all in all, I couldn’t complain too much.

The second week came, and things came to a boil in my theology class. I went out and bought the books we needed for the class, and set my goal of getting through the assigned reading. But understanding a text on German theological philosophy written in 1809 is easier said than done. The sentences were half a page long, and some had 4 semicolons in them. The words were huge, incomprehensible, and sometimes unable to translate. I thought I might die.

But I didn’t throw in the towel right away; first I focused on approaching the text in different ways. I read it 6 or 7 times, trying to get a little more out of it each time. I took notes each time, typed them up, revised them and then tried to read it again. But this just wasn’t happening. So I found the text in English online. And that helped, but it was still confusing.

But you know what? I stuck to my guns and went to class anyways. Anddddd, it got worse. I understood maybe 2% of what was said in the class. I couldn’t contribute anything to the discussion because I couldn’t even tell you WHAT they were talking about, much less everyone’s opinion about it. It also didn’t help that the Professor kept mumbling to himself.

For example, the Professor would stand at the front of the room and say, “Now, THIS isn’t what is important about this topic. It’s really not. You shouldn’t care about THIS, THAT, or THIS OTHER THING. What you should really care about is… kalskdjf a;liewfkjasdj klna;fdjsg lkajdf” And then I’d sit there and be like, “Great, I understood all the things that aren’t important, but I miss the one crucial concept!? Really? REALLY!?”

So, I resigned myself to failure and decided to look for another course. It wasn’t going to help me to sit all semester in a course that I had no hope of understanding, much less comprehending well enough to write a 20-page paper about and contribute regularly in class discussions. But luckily enough, I found a theology class on Religion and Literature in the 19th Century, which started meeting the next day!

I e-mailed the Professor, and got a spot! I actually love the new class – not only because the topic is really interesting, but it’s also in English! At first I felt guilty for taking a class in English (not the best for improving my German), but I figure that I deserve to understand what’s happening for just 2-hours each week, right?

In any case, all my other 4 classes are completely in German, and they are all going really well. I’ve been able to make friends in every class, and the German students are always really helpful if I don’t understand something.

My literature class is probably the dullest, but I can’t complain too much. I actually really like the professor, it’s just that poetry and old texts were never “my thing.” But that’s all right, we all need to be well-rounded people, and the class does a lot to improve my German.

My mass media class is super interesting – I’ve never taken a marketing class before. It’s really just an overview of everything from newspapers, magazines, and television to Facebook and Twitter. The Professor is strict though, and is one of those that will just call on you at any random minute. You’ve got to always be prepared to say something at least somewhat intelligent.

The Aussprache (Pronunciation) class I’m in is actually somewhat difficult for me. My written German has always been better than my spoken German, so I’m taking this course to work on that. But my pronunciation is terrible, and I mean TERRIBLE. So the Professor always makes me say things ten times over, and at the end it’s usually still not right. Oh well, that’s what I’m in the class for, right?

Lastly, my Sociology lecture is going pretty well. One of the German friends I made here in Tübingen is also in the class, so she is my personal human dictionary, and explains things I don’t understand. But all in all, the class is fascinating. We’re currently studying Karl Marx and his sociological principles. After we look at all the people that laid the groundwork for modern Sociology, we’ll start looking at modern principles of society.

So, I hope I didn’t bore you all to death with an analysis of all my classes! I think I’m going to enjoy the semester, and I’ll be sure to keep updating how everything in my classes is going, every now-and-then.

Until next time!

Tschüß!

 

 

 

5 Books You Must Read before Visiting/Working/Living in Paris…

November 7, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Bonjour tout le monde! (Hello everybody!)

If it’s been awhile since I wrote it’s only because I’ve been finishing school, taking a week’s vacation in Barcelona & the South of France, and starting work in a non-profit here in Paris (more about that later!) Needless to say, this semester is flying by!

Anyways…back to the reading list!

First, a bit of background. In order to help me “prepare” (mentally, physically, linguistically!) for my year abroad, various family members (namely my mother) would present me with a new French”guide” book for every holiday and birthday. I picked up a few as well, as I knew dealing with the notoriously “difficult” French (namely Parisiens) was going to be no easy task for an alternately spunky and shy American girl like myself. I thought that if I had some insider information about the little known-nuances of French culture, I might have an edge over other foreigners, or at least maybe win some respect. While the jury’s still out on whether or not I’ve succeeded, these books provide humorous (and useful!) insight into French do’s and don’ts!

1) French or Foe: Making the Most Out of Living & Working in France by Polly Platt

Long regarded as the ultimate guide for foreigners living in Paris, French or Foe is written by a woman who herself made the transition from life in America to living and working in France with a French husband and French children. Incredible detail and witty explanations of everything from dinner etiquette to romance!

2) Pardon My French: Unleash Your Inner Gaul by Charles Timoney

The reviews say this Brit’s manual for decoding the French and their language will make you “so convincing that French people will talk very fast to you”…hence why it’s currently on my nightstand.

3) Savoir Flair: 211 Tips for Enjoying France and the French by Polly Platt

The followup to the popular “French or Foe” (see #1 above), Savoir Flair is the abbreviated version of its predecesor. Personal Favorite chapters: Enjoying Finding Something You Lost: Don’t Give up (p. 146), Enjoying Being a woman in France (p. 167): American girls, take note!

4) Words in a French Life: Lessons in Love and Language from the South of France by Kristin Epinasse

Written by a young woman from New Mexico who met her future (French) husband while studying abroad, Words in a French Life is the literary incarnation of the popular blog with the same name. Each chapter is short, pertaining only to the definition of a single French word, couched in anecdotes of her children, family, and daily life as an American living in Provence.

5) Dessine-moi Un Parisien by Olivier Magny (available in English under the title Stuff Parisiens like)

As I didn’t discover this gem until it was recommended to me by one of my French professors here in Paris, Dessine-Moi un Parisien is a funny and short (and illustrated!) half-celebration, half -mockery of the hoity-toity Parsien culture we all simultaneously love and hate, and has of late, become my reading material on the Metro!

 

Pick up one of these, and may you be enlightened and entertained!

Heaven on Earth

November 4, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Sunrise over Corsica

Our next stop after Venice was the island of Corsica, in the Mediterranean off the coasts of Italy and France. We arrived in Toulon, France by dinnertime Tuesday, met up with Matt and Molly, who were coming from Paris after doing their own things for the first weekend, and grabbed some Chinese food. Spiciness, finally, I’d been missing it like crazy here in Europe. And then we boarded a ferry, which was more of a cruise ship, but super cheap considering, overnight to Corsica. Even though we had been up early the day before to catch our train to Toulon, we got up early Wednesday morning to see the sunrise over the island.

It was gorgeous. Like heaven on earth, hence the title of this blog. I mean, just take a look at the pictures. I knew from pictures and people talking that Corsica was supposed to be amazing, but it just didn’t compare to being there ourselves. (I didn’t get to see dolphins… That was a huge disappointment, but the rest of Corsica definitely made up for it.)

On the beach by the citadel

So we landed early in the morning, found a tourist office to leave our luggage at, grabbed some coffee to keep us awake, and then headed to a beach! We found one by the walls of an old citadel after only five minutes of walking. It was seriously beautiful. And really warm, perfect temperature to be in the Mediterranean on an island. And sunny. Really, just the perfect day. So we played in the sand for a bit, clambered over rocks on the coastline, and ran into the sea to swim in the perfectly crystal-clear water. And tossed a Frisbee, probably my favorite part.

Frisbee in the Mediterranean 🙂

After relaxing for a few hours, though, we decided it was time for lunch and to go get some open water kayaks. So we did. Sarah and Molly actually did get into a kayak, I was so proud of them! Even though they freaked out and decided staying on the beach was a better idea. So Matt and I headed out for a few hours of pure bliss off the coast of the most beautiful island in the most beautiful sea in the world. In my humble opinion. The best few hours of the entire trip so far, without contest, and that’s saying something. Although seeing my best friend Kate in Athens tomorrow may just be up there too. It’ll be a hard choice!

Matt on a kayak

By the time we got back and FINALLY found food that was open, it was dark and we only had a couple hours before our overnight ferry back to Toulon left, so we relaxed for a bit and got ready to live in a moving water palace again for a night. And to shower, because all that saltwater and wet clothes just weren’t gonna cut it for another 24 hours. And after all that exercise and the great fried dinner we got on the boat, we crashed like babies.

So now I’m in Rome (after way too long on trains) for the night, ready to board my flight to Athens in the morning. And I really can’t wait to see just how the second weekend and then next week of break compare to the first. If it’s even close, these will be some of the best two weeks of my life.

Rest of the photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/100454144518688283131/HeavenOnEarth

 

Venezia

November 4, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Sunrise behind Doge's Palace

Venice was amazing, beautiful, relaxing, and just really really cool. We left Rome late at night, and got into Venice at 5:30. Yes, a.m. Which turned out to be a great decision, because we were able to see the sunrise over Venice. And since Venice is a huge tourist trap, being there in the wee early hours of the morning gave us a glimpse of its beauty before being invaded by humans. After finding the square with Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica, we sat for a while and just enjoyed the beauty of the sea and the old buildings and the sunrise. And then found somewhere to get hot chocolate and croissants at like 8 for breakfast. We were starving at that point, obviously. But nobody else was up yet, so we had the outside café all to ourselves (well, we shared with the pigeons).

After our hostel opened and we could drop our bags off, we headed out again to tour St. Mark’s Basilica before the afternoon, hoping to beat the crowds. Fail. I doubt there’s such a thing as beating the crowds in Venice. But still, we got to see it, and it was just magnificent. Especially the golden altarpiece and the ceilings, which were painted gold or had gold mosaic or something gold. And the bones of St. Mark were under the altar (supposedly, obviously). So after facing the crowds, we decided it was time to wander the streets a bit, since the best part of being in Venice was getting lost with all the canals and bridges and old houses surrounding you.

But we were also starving, so we cut our wanderings a bit short in search of good fish. Which was also a fail. Guess our trying to find something fast and cheapish gave us that quality of fish too. So to counteract our disappointment and tiredness we grabbed a seat on the steps on the Grand Canal and took a good hour, two hour nap. And were still a bit lazy afterwards and so decided wandering again was our best option. We found so many Venetian mask shops, and some cannoli (yum), and even some people walking around wearing costumes. It WAS Halloween, so it wasn’t just because they were crazy Venetians. Maybe.

St. Mark's Basilica

We headed back to the hostel a bit early, since we had been up since like five, and relaxed for a few hours before our free dinner with the rest of the people staying at the hostel. Which was a great chance to meet everyone from around the world and share travel stories (and the free food might’ve been the best part. I mean, I’m a student traveling. I appreciate ANYTHING that’s free). And then the staff of our hostel took us out on the city for a few hours, and though Venice at night was also super cool, it just can’t beat the sunrise.

Venice, though, is totally worth a trip. It was amazing, relaxing, and just beautiful. Even if it is a bit touristy. So to see all my pictures, follow this link: https://picasaweb.google.com/100454144518688283131/Venizia

On the Grand Canal

 

When in Rome.

November 3, 2011 / / 1 Comment

Now that my break is one week over (not halfway, not halfway until Saturday. Yes, I’m keeping track of every single day), and now that I have a bit of internet for once, I can add a few blogs to let y’all know what I’ve been up to for the past week. It’s been exciting! And will probably take a few different blogs.

So we (Sarah and I) started off our break on a night train to Rome. Didn’t want to waste any time by waiting until Saturday to travel! And we had a reservation, like we needed, so we get onto the train ready to grab our seats. Turns out we had reserved the wrong date.. It was confusing, ok? There were two dates since it was an overnight train. That’s our excuse. So we ended up trying to sleep on the floor by one of the doors. Which was just fine actually, had some room to spread out and it was pretty quiet, considering. Until like 3 a.m. when a huge group of Italians got on the train and decided the area we were in was the best part of the train to be in. Needless to say, we didn’t get much sleep after that. Especially since they stole all of our leg room. Some of the stereotypes about Italians, being loud and boisterous, are alas true.

Hall of maps inside the Vatican

But then we made it to Rome around 9 ready (somewhat) to start a sightseeing-packed day. Once we finally found our hostel and dropped our stuff off, we headed out to Vatican City. It was really really cool, in case you doubted it for some reason. We got hassled by about five different recruiters for tour guides before giving in and taking a tour. Bright side, we got to skip long lines and take a pretty personal tour, only five of us on it, and got more information than we would have otherwise. Downside, we paid a little extra and practically sprinted through the Vatican.. But if anyone wants to go visit, go with Discover Rome tours, we took them the next day for the Colosseum and they were GREAT and do a Vatican tour too. Even though we were rushed, we still got to see all the amazing things. Like the Sistine Chapel with it’s completely famous Michaelangelo paintings.

Altar in St. Peter's Basilica

Our tour ended in St. Peter’s Basilica where we had all the time we wanted to wander around. After studying the Reformation and Luther’s stance against this church, since it was the cause for all the indulgences, it was interesting to see what made those indulgences worth the scandal. Might not be worth the scandal, but the church was absolutely gorgeous. And full of history, obviously. And of course, outside the Vatican were all the colorfully, goofily (is that a word? It is now..) dressed Swiss guard.

If we had come back the next day at noon (Sunday) we could’ve seen the Pope! Which would’ve been awesome. But then again, there was so much more of Rome that we wanted to see, since we only had two days. Saturday night we saw the Pantheon and ate an Italian pasta dinner outside, then trekked to the Trevi fountain to see it at night and to the Colosseum to see it all lit up. Both were absolutely gorgeous.

Sarah and the Colosseum

So the first day was mostly our Vatican day, but Sunday was our ancient Roman history day. We started off with the Colosseum, which is where we found the Discover Rome tour which was great. We even learned that they probably didn’t throw the Christians to the lions, that that was only recorded way after the events. But the rest of the Colosseum was in no way a letdown.

After allowing us time to walk around the Colosseum ourselves, we met up with the tour group again for the second part, the Roman Forum. Which actually turned out to not be not through the Roman Forum, but rather through ancient palace ruins on top of the hill above the Roman Forum as well as information about the Forum. I had had no idea that all that cool stuff was there, I was just expecting a few columns and stuff from the Forum. Instead, we got to see the first “private entertainment system,” the emperor/king/whatever-he-was-called’s private battle arena. And Mussolini’s palace (which is now just a museum of artifacts, but still, the outside has his symbol and everything). And then we got to go out on our own to the Forum. And the Forum itself, like the courtyard, was just ruins of pillars, a few still standing. But surrounding it were old temples transformed into churches, and the first voting building, and practically the oldest street in the world. All of which fascinated me.

Roman Forum

Trevi fountain

After the tour, we got pasta again, saw the Trevi fountain again to make our wishes, and then headed to the Spanish steps. Which were kinda disappointing, not gonna lie. There were tons of people, like I expected, but they were literally just steps, no architecture or anything. But we can say we were there! Which is true of all of Rome now! Thing is, it never sank in while we were there that we were in Rome. It was very strange, because we had been looking forward to it for so long. And the pictures are amazing, and so we can look back on it and be amazed with ourselves for being there. Hopefully it’ll sink in soon! On the other hand, Venice was much better. So see the next blog for our adventures there!

 

Just Around the River Bend

October 26, 2011 / / 0 Comments

Getting ready to raft

As a part of the program here in Namibia, we are allotted one week of travel on our own. Our group here did a variety of things including visiting Victoria Falls, traveling to the Skeleton Coast, and some decided to road trip around Southern Africa. I decided that I wanted to do something that was stress free. So four friends and I headed to the border of Namibia and South Africa and rafted down a river for a week.

Jumping off a cliff

The river is called the Orange River and it is nestled between two mountain ranges; one in Nambia and the other in South Africa. We rafted for four days and saw somuch. The first day on the river we climbed a massive rock and jumped off of it into the river. Later in the week we rode down rapids with just a life jacket. My favorite part of the trip though was every night we would set up camp on the river bank and literally I would fall asleep looking at the stars. When I’d wake up in the morning I would see the sun rising above the mountains. Never in my life have I ever been surrounded by pure untainted beauty.

Sitting in the back of the raft

My vacation was just what the doctor ordered. I had so much fun with my friends, but also got to relax in the beauty of Southern Africa. I’m now back in Windhoek and the days are flying by. I have one month left here and then we head to Cape Town to finish our time here. I can’t wait to see what these last few weeks entail because I know they will be nothing less than amazing.

 

 

 

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